Saturday, 22 October 2016

Important Information About Southeast Alaska Archaeology

By James McDonald


Generally, archaeology involve the study of the ancient and recent past of the human through material remains. Archaeologists normally analyze physical remains while they seek to follow a broad and a comprehensive understanding of human culture. However, Southeast Alaska archaeology can help you have a unique perspective of the human history and culture that has greatly contributed to understanding the ancient as well as the recent past.

As a matter of fact, archaeologists helps us to know when and where people lived and also how and why they lived. They examine the changes as well as the causes of such changes which have happened in the human culture, and seek patterns and explanations for everything from when and how people came to inhabit different areas, the origin of agriculture and the complex societies.

As opposed to history which primarily relies on written documents and records to interpret significant events and lives, archaeology helps to go far back, to the time before written languages evolved, and looks at everyday lives of people by analyzing things they made or left behind. On the other hand, this is the only field of study which covers all time periods and geographical regions that were inhabited by people.

As a matter of fact, it has helped people to understand other big topics such as the ancient Egyptian religion, the origin of agriculture, the live of Africans enslaved in North America, as well as the early Mediterranean trade routes. At the same time, archaeologists can today inform about the lives of communities, families and individuals which might otherwise remain invisible. In fact, without what archaeologists have unearthed and discovered, what is written in the history books would be very different. They also help people understand the interaction of humans with other objects and the architecture outside what is written in history.

Again, archaeologists look at artifacts to come up with a pattern of how the human culture was like. They look at artifacts so as they can get an idea how people who created such artifacts or used them lived. For instance, they analyze how the southeast people who made pottery transformed with time by looking at their skills, designs and decorations, technology used, and the ways in which they used the pottery.

Any place that archaeologists unearth or discover physical remains of activities of humans is referred to as an archaeological site. Usually, there are various types of archaeological sites. Again, archaeological sites may be as tiny as chipped stone-tools, which a hunter who might have wanted to sharpen a spearhead left behind or even this could be a large or complex site.

Even when the archaeological sites are small, they may still contain more wealth of important information. Archaeologists look at objects made and used so as to collect information on people who made and used them.

The non-portable artifacts which are known as features form an important source of information for the archaeologists. Such features may include the likes of soil stains which may indicate where garbage dumps, storage pits, fences or structures once existed. Eco-facts such as animal and plant remains can also help in understanding diet and the subsistence patterns of ancient people.




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